


The Shield's Tears

by AshynnaStarlight



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Angst, Arguing, Crying, Established Relationship, F/M, Mourning, Reader based on Requester, Reader-Insert, Reconneting, Relationship Issues, Soft Explicit Content, unprotected intercourse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-22
Updated: 2018-01-22
Packaged: 2019-03-08 06:12:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,293
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13452198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshynnaStarlight/pseuds/AshynnaStarlight
Summary: Gladio has been holding things in which causes a strain on your relationship. Tonight, you were going to confront him and make him talk with you. It was not healthy to hold in whatever he was holding in.





	The Shield's Tears

**Author's Note:**

> Finally, I finished the first of the three giveaway stories. Why is it taking me so long? Well, it was suppose to be a 2k fic and it turned over 4k because I cannot write short one-shots it seems. First one up is for chocobruh-art who asked me for some Gladio angst with a wiff of smut. I hope you enjoy it, love. It went a bit different than I wanted to, so yeah. :sweatdrop: Thanks Moosh for giving me inspiration!
> 
> There will be a few descriptive here and there as the reader is based on the requester.

As you stared out of the window, you wrapped your slender arms around your waist as you tried to keep your mind from worrying. The clock had struck 8pm, and you had not heard a thing from Gladio all day. It started to wear down on you. You had sent him messages, seen they had been received but no reply to them. Or any sign that he had read them to begin with.

For how long was this going to go on for? You understood he was busy. Being the King’s Shield was a taxing job that demanded much of his time, that it didn’t give him much time to be with you. But you had thought that when he had time, when he could spend time with you, he would be happy. Focused on the two of you. However, when he was home, he mostly slept or was on his phone. You had wondered a few times if he was cheating on you, but you had dismissed that. He would have ended it between you two if he had found someone else. He had that much honour left.

Nevertheless, it didn’t take away that you were hurt, and feeling neglected. You missed cuddling and holding him. Talking with him about the silliest of things on the couch. To just be a couple together. But it felt like you two were drifting apart, and you didn’t want that. You loved him so much. He was everything for you...but were you still that for him?

A rush of adrenaline coursed through you as you heard the key turn in the lock. Turning around, you brushed your fingers through your short hair and bit down on your bottom lip. He looked haggard. His skin had gotten a greyish undertone, with dark circles under his eyes. Those vibrant amber eyes you loved to gaze in had become dull, distant, and emotionless. His shoulders slumped and arching forward a bit, as if he tried to curl up into himself. It broke your heart to see him like this. All you wanted to do was rush towards him and hug him, take care of him. But you didn’t move an inch as you watched him take off his boots, not even looking at you.

Gladio felt like he had been run over by a behemoth or two. His mind so deep and stuck in the dark place that has been haunting him for a while now, that he did not even notice you standing there. No matter how much he worked, how much he tried to exhaust himself, he couldn’t shake the memories. Every time he went to the throne room, he saw his father hanging from the ceiling again. He saw the horrible wound that Titus....no _Glauca_ had inflicted to him. It always choked him up.

His father had been everything to him; his role model, his friend, and his inspiration. When he had heard that the King was gone, he knew immediately his father was gone too. There had been no time to mourn. His duty was to protect Noctis. Mourning could come later.

But then, the Darkness came and Ignis, Prompto, and he had been going all over Eos preparing for Noctis’ return. Always busy, never stopping, never having time to process all the build-up emotions he had. Then you had come along and became a beacon of hope for him. A safe haven where he could forget everything. But even his love for you could not forever keep the pain away, and his pride did not allow him to reach out to you. To let you see how damage he actually was. What if you decided you didn’t want him anymore, after seeing how messed up he was. No, he would not be able to handle that loss.

“Gladio,” you spoke his name firmly when he seemed to just walk past you without a goodnight, straight towards the bedroom. You couldn’t go on like this anymore. Communication was key, and it was time the two of you were having a heart to heart if this relationship was going anywhere. Because this wasn’t healthy for either of you.

He looked startled at you, frowning for a moment. The look on his face made your heart clench even more. He looked how you felt, alone, tired, and cold. Your arms tightened around yourself even more as you searched for the words. Your heart beating faster as your skin tingled with anxiety. Confrontations were never your strong suit, hated it when he got worked up and shouted. Of course you knew that he would never hurt you, but still...yelling was never fun.

“We need to talk.”

“Can this wait, Y/N? I had a long day, and I am tired,”  Gladio spoke dismissively, continuing to walk without waiting for your reply. A wave of anger rushed through you.

Before you realised what happened, you grabbed his arm and pulled him towards you. He barely moved as he was so much bigger and stronger, you more than a feet shorter than him. But he seemed to realise you didn’t want him to walk away. His thick brows knotting together as he stared down a bit surprised at you, confused.

“No! I am done with waiting, Gladio. So damn done!” you yelled at him as words spilled from your lips like water, the dam having been broken. Tonight would be the night that decided how the relationship would continue; either the two of you were going to break up or finally starting to move into a healthier and better situation. By the Six, you hoped it would be the later one.

Steeling yourself, you dropped your hand and stared back at him with determination. “I feel like we are drifting apart, Gladio, and it is terrifying me. I keep wondering if I have done something wrong. But I am also tired of being kept out of the loop. If you don’t want me anymore, just fucking tell me! I am sick and tired of waiting for you at home, night after night. Waiting for a hint of news or even affection. You barely talk to me when you’re home. Barely even sleep at home. If there is something I have done wrong, tell me instead of punishing me like this!”

He started at you almost shocked. Part of him had forgotten how fierce you could be, even though you hated moments like these. You were like a lioness, fiery and strong. But your words were like stabs to his heart as well as he realised how much he had fucked it up. His temper flared, wanting to lash out, to fight, to howl and roar. But he couldn’t. What he had learned over the years, heck from you even, was how to control his temper and that shouting wasn’t the right first reaction. Definitely not this time, because he knew he had fucked up. _He_ was the one at fault, and it made him feel like an absolute fuckwit.

To see you stand like this before him, so much smaller with your eyes wide. Your short hair a disarray as you vibrated with so much emotion. He only started to feel worse as his thoughts started to spiral into the dark territory he had fought so hard to keep out of, to keep away from you. You did not deserve to be burdened like this.

The silence was almost painful as Gladio just stared at you, no emotion visible on his face which only made your own mind going crazy. Imagining all kinds of scenarios, one worse than the other as you wrapped your arms around your waist again. To hold yourself together. Moments went by as the only reaction he gave you was the vein pulsing on his temple.

“Gladio, _please_ ,” you begged him, for anything. “Tell me what is going on, tell me what is happening in your mind. I cannot read minds even though you always joke to me about it. Talk to me!” Frustrated, you shoved against his solid chest. Trying to get any reaction out of him, even him yelling at you was better than this stoic silence as it was something you could work with. “ _Talk to me_!” Confide in you. Let you be the partner you wanted, and he deserved.

Tears started to well up in your eyes as your hands fisted his Citadel uniform he had started to wear. He looked handsome in it - different, but handsome. But you had no time thinking about how hot he was. You needed answers. You wanted to fight for what you loved, but if he didn’t feel the same, you deserved to be set free without hurting yourself over and over again with doubts.

The silence kept stretching, keep becoming longer and longer like the shadows that appeared when the sun started to set. It felt like that right now, as if the sun was setting on your relationship. Letting out a wounded little noise, you pulled away. Your throat constricted as everything felt so _heavy_ on your chest. Your fingers felt oddly number, as did your jaw, your head feeling heavy. Pulling away from him, you turned around as you tried to force the words out of your mouth. If he didn’t want to talk, you weren’t going to bother staying. It wasn’t fair. But part of you still wanted to fight, still wanted to do something. You loved him, but the doubts in your mind were yelling at you, and his silence did not help at all.

“I can’t stop seeing him.” You froze as you heard the naked pain in Gladio’s voice. “Everywhere I walk, I keep expecting him to come around the corner and call my name. It is worse when I walk into the Throne Room. I keep....I keep, fuck.” Turning around, you met amber eyes hidden behind a veil of tears as the look on his face utterly broke your heart. Gone was the stoic hard man that had been replacing your lover, now in his place stood a broken man who looked so lost.

Gladio stared at you, hearing you cry out to him to talk had been painful, but seeing you turn your back to him had broken the chains that had held him back from speaking openly and killed his pride. He couldn’t do this anymore. Couldn’t walk alone. He needed help. _He, Gladiolus Amicitia, needed help_. “I keep seeing him hang from the ceiling. I keep imagining what Ti...Glauca had done to him.”  A betrayal he had never managed to shake off. The man he had thought was Titus Drautos had been a good friend of his father. Had his father known that for years his friend had been plotting to betray them? Had plotted to destroy everything his father had fought for and protected his whole life?

He had looked up to _him_ , like he had looked up to Cor and his father. It just...there were no words to describe to know that his father had been killed by a friend, had been utterly betrayed like that. His world kept spinning and shattering. And because he was stuck in his own mind, he had lost you. You were going to leave him. Find someone less broken and stronger than him.

Slumping down onto his knees, he let out a broken sound that was even more pained than the one you had emitted. He stared at his scarred and calloused hands. How could he have hurt you so much. He didn’t deserve you. He should let you go.

Slender, softer hands took his, and he looked right into your eyes. Seeing the thick tears running down your cheeks as you held onto his hands to tightly. His lifeline. His pulse. His last thread to sanity. He felt like he was drowning, lost at sea, so damn alone. Because he had been too dumb to not to reach out. Trying to be a dumb man and shoulder the world alone.

“Gladio.” You felt like a downright idiot. Should have known that this was what was bothering him. His voice in your mind chided you, telling you that you couldn’t have been sure so you shouldn’t blame yourself. And blaming yourself wasn’t what he needed right now. He needed to be held, and finally start to properly mourn.

Your fingers trembled faintly as you touched his face, brushing his tears away as you said nothing. What could you say? Nothing that you could say would soothe the sting of betrayal. All you could do is give him physical comfort. “I miss him Y/N. I keep wanting to tell him things, expecting him to pick up when I call, or him giving me advice when I am lost. I...It...” He broke down as you rested his face against your shoulder and held him close.

Soon enough, he started shaking as he wrapped his muscular arms around you. The fabric of your shirt becoming wet as he made such painful sounds. You rested your cheek against his temple as you brushed your fingers over his hair. Rocking him back and forth. It soothed you, knowing what was wrong, but you wanted him to let out all the pain. Years and years of being tough would wear someone out. Yes, pressure on coal created diamonds. But even the most brilliant and strongest diamonds would crack under too much pressure.

He clung to you, like a child would cling to their mother. But he didn’t give a rat’s ass right now. It felt so good to being held again by you, feeling so utterly safe in your arms. Feeling you rocking him and trying to be there for him while he sobbed his heart out. Thick tears kept rolling as he felt nothing but the intense sorrow that had been building up inside of him like a toxin ever since he turned 23. Ever since he heard Ignis tell them Insomnia had fallen, and the King had died. With every salty drop, the pressure eased. It was true what they said, crying helped.

“I miss him every day. It hurts. It hurts so damn much. Some days I cannot breathe, I cannot think. Everything is too much for me. I try to be strong, but all I want to do is scream, rage, destroy something, or just howl. And I can’t do that. I am scared that I will fly into a blind rage and hurt someone I love, that I hurt....” he fell silent as he started to cry again, your arms tightening in automatic response as you knew what he wanted to say.

“Me, you are worried you would hurt me.”

He nodded as his hand moved to the back of your head, resting against it softly as he crushed you carefully against him. He was always so cautious about his strength, always so careful. “I fucked up. While I tried to protect you, to keep you from hurting, I still hurt you. Hurt you with my silence and distance. Hurt you with not talking to you.”

The Shield pulled back, looking at you with that lost look still on his face. His eyes red from his tears. You took his hands again, pressing reassuring kisses on them. “I don’t deserve....”

“Don’t say that, please. Yes, you do deserve me. You need to stop thinking and talking like this. It makes you hold everything in, push everyone aside, or blow up at us when we try to help you.” You rested your forehead against his as he leaned closer, hands holding each other’s so tightly. “You need to talk, Gladdy. You need to lean on us for a chance.”

You words hit home, if the way his expression tightened was any sign of it. His fingers twitching around yours. _Ah_. He had been raised from a very young age to protect people, to shoulder everyone’s burdens. To be the people’s rock and shield. But who was _his_ rock and shield?

“Remember what you told me? That we can’t always be strong. That sometimes, we have to rely on those who love us and let ourselves heal.”

Gladio swallowed as he knew you were right. Often, he had hammered to you that it was okay to lean others. Bloody hypocritical of him, seeing he hadn’t lived by his own words. But here you were. Even after he had fucked up, neglected you, trying to be this tough man, you had stayed and were trying to help him get out of the well of sorrow he was stuck in.

His heart swelled as he saw the love and adoration you had for him clear in your eyes, how fierce you were in your own way. Wrapping his arms around you, he hugged you close as he let your presence brush away the coldness that had tried to take over his body.

“I do not know what to do, Y/N.” The words left a bad taste in his mouth, admitting being vulnerable, admitting to be lost in his mourning and unable to handle it anymore. It felt liberating as well, to be able to say it out loud, knowing he would not be judged.

“Then we will figure it out. Starting tomorrow, because now, you just need to be held,” you whispered softly as he nuzzled his face against your throat. “Let me hold you and make you feel good.” Tomorrow you would talk with the other three, ask Cor for advice. Get him some professional help, because you could support him, but you did not have the tools that would actually get him to a better place.

You knew that Ignis had made Noctis and Prompto get help – then the Strategist had been bullied by his friends to get professional help himself. But that sneaky Gladio of yours had managed to slip through the cracks. Not any longer. He deserved to mourn over the losses he had experienced, just like anyone else. And you would make sure he would, even if it meant you had to unleash Iris on him.

Gladio suddenly picked you up, a faint chuckle escaping his lips as you yelped, but it was good hearing some joy in his voice again. Wrapping your arms around his neck, you rubbed your nose against his cheek as you relaxed. He still loved you. You hadn’t done something wrong. You just needed to give him some TLC, help, and bugging him when he was retreating into himself.

“Let me shower for a moment, and then we cuddle in bed, okay? I have missed being in your arms. In my little safe haven.” Okay, he made you melt when he talked like that. His voice a deep solid rumble.

“I missed holding you too, or you just sleeping next to me,” you whispered honestly as you brushed your fingers against his cheek. Brushing his tears away. He still looked shaken and vulnerable. You didn’t expect anything else. He wasn’t hiding anymore, and that was good. That was the first step of recovering.

After he put you down on the bed, you moved onto your knees and started to help him get out of his uniform. He let out a little noise of frustrations as there were so many damn belts. Even you got a bit frustrated with them. “Who designed this? A dude with a belt fetish?”

It was quiet for a few seconds, before he let out a belly deep laugh. Your head snapped up surprised, it had been so long since you heard him laugh. But here he was, head leaning back a bit as his shoulders and chest shook. The sound so warm, wrapping around you like a blanket. He wiped a few tears away before cupping your face with a gentle smile on his face.

“You always find a way to make me laugh. Thank you, love.” Your cheeks heated up as you leaned into his touch, his lips brushing against your forehead.

“Just telling the truth,” you replied as you felt his lips curve, a weight falling off your shoulders. Laughter was good. Laughter was a balm on a hurt soul.

He pulled back, staring into your eyes as his fingers brushed over you jawline, then brushing over your lips. The air around you two changed, the anxious tension turning into something hotter and more sensual. You pressed a soft kiss against your lips as you rested your hands against his bare stomach. His skin radiated heat, warming you up as you hadn’t realised you had felt so cold without him by your side.

Now that he had talked with you, and you knew what was going on, the awkwardness and heaviness had changed. Creating room for warmth and adoration. Adoration you could see so clearly in his eyes now. Yes, he still looked rather tired and haggard, but lighter as well.

“I know we shouldn’t do this, after all that happened. But I want to show you how much you mean to me. I…I want to reconnect with you,” he whispered as he moved onto his knees before you. It put him at the same height as you, no more straining for you to look into his eyes. “I know I have no right to ask you of this, after….”

He let out a startled noise when you crashed your lips against his to silence him, your hands shoving into his dark hair and holding onto him. The shock didn’t last long as he took that as permission to continue, to respond to your kiss. His hands moved under the shirt you were wearing as you could taste his desperation, but also the want and love that he had for you. Maybe yes, you two shouldn’t be doing this so soon. Emotions still high, but you both needed the closeness as it had been so long. Both needed to be reminded that this was going to be okay, that you two would fight for the relationship. And it was a good way to release some of the pent-up energy the both of you must surely feel.  

The last articles of clothes were hastily shed from our bodies as you kept your lips pressed against each other eagerly. Hands moved and roamed, you marvelling over the hard muscles that were hidden under his skin. The hairs on his body brushing against your softer skin and teasing you intimately.

Whispers spoken in his rough voice filled your ears, your body heating up in response. Those hands you loved so much moved over your body, positioning you properly underneath him. His larger body moved on top of you, his legs parting yours as his eyes never strayed. He kept looking at your face, taking in each miniscule change as he was learning you anew.

His hips were pressed against yours, his arousal rubbing hotly against your folds but he did not enter you yet. No, he kept himself busy with kissing your skin. Those strong hands that protected so many playing with your breasts as you melted under his ministrations. His cheek rubbed against your throat, leaving marks with his facial hair.

Yes this was what you both needed. You felt all the pain and sorrow you had felt melt away, your lips whispering back words of love and praise back to him. The Shield shuddered on top of you, the lines of his face fused with emotions. But the predominantly one was love. He loved you so damn much.

As he locked eyes with you again, he lined himself up with your heat and pushed into you. A gasp left your body, your back arching as he moved so slow – allowing you body to get used to his size again.  His hand took your, entwining your fingers together before resting your hands beside your hand. His other forearm rested on the other side of your head to support his larger frame.

Your world became just him and you, those amber eyes that bore into yours. The slow but firm rolls of him body against yours, the reactions it created in your own body. Raising your hand, you cupped his face and pulled him down – sealing your lips together again. You didn’t care about breathing. Just the connection between you two which blossomed and flourished again.

“Y/N, my love, thank you. Thank you so much,” he murmured against your lips, his tears mixing with yours but this time neither of you cried with sorrow. They were tears of hope and joy, that there would be a new tomorrow with you two being together. A better tomorrow than the one you had this morning, and it would only become better. His body moved a bit faster, firmer. His pelvis stimulating your clit. Pushing you closer and closer to the edge.

Usually, the orgasms were hard and mind-numbing. But this, this was a gentle warm blanket wrapping around you. Filled with softness and love, but just as satisfying. You trembled underneath him, mewling out his name as he gasped out yours in response. His hips stuttering and burying against yours. Another kind of warmth filled you, one that made you warm so softly.

As you both panted, you rubbed your nose against his. He smiled, pressing a quick kiss against your lips as he held himself up, squeezing your hand. “I love you, Y/N. Thank you, thank you for fighting for me. I promise things will become better. I will not let you down again.”

“I know you won’t, Gladio. Thank you for trusting me with your pain and yours tears. Thank you, my lovely teddy bear.”

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos are appreciated


End file.
